While yes, it does fill some typical Taiwan cliches and yes, the story isn't anything out of this world, but that's okay because the drama sis what it was supposed to do - make you laugh, smile, and feel for the characters. And the biggest reason I loved this drama so much is because of these characters and chemistry they had - the hilarious manager, the loud but supportive BFF, the quirky office workers, almost everyone in the cast did a great job.
I also loved the bickering and cute moments that the main couple shared. In all, I have to say: ALL ROY FANS THIS IS A MUST WATCH, but even if you are not familiar with the cast or Taiwanese dramas, I still recommend this to those who enjoy a fun to watch, breezy show. If you feel that it starts to drag, just skip those parts and watch all the way to the end becuz that wedding kiss in the last ep is BAM!
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What I liked best had to be Roy, he was so cute in everything he did! Not his character but the actual actor.I also LOVED the manager, with all his different languages. I promise he spoke spanish, korean, japanese, english, and a french phrase or 2. He is a complete scene steal-er, but his antics and Roy's face kept me watching. As the majority of the actors only had 2-3 expressions, those 2 were super entertaining(the actress who played Zheng Kai Er was the WORST only 2 expressions!).
The story line is good, but if you have watched more than 4 t-dramas you see where the plot is going. The first half like I mentioned is really good. They shake it up a bit with some of the really cliched schemes you see in dramas. The female lead, Shen XingRen, in the beginning was really driven, positive, and strong. In the beginning, Roy's character was played perfectly, and the characters that were annoying were negligible. In the second half they just go back to the typical drama format, with the misunderstandings, the he said she said, XingRen gets weaker, the typical drama antagonist appears, and lastly lots of personality changes happen for nearly no reason.
I personally called the ending and what would happen in the last episodes around ep17 and I fast forwarded through a lot. I cant say its worthwhile watch because I really felt like they could have ended it around episode 15/16 and I would have been happier. I think they should have named the drama office prince or undercover boss, because that's what its about.
p.s. i want to fire the stylist- they re-wore a lot of outfits, XingRens pants never fitted her correctly, all the office girls had on booty shorts, and Mama Shen's wig was a mess!
p.p.s if you are a sucker for a good ending stick it out! it has a really nice ending.
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What made this drama so good in my eyes? The story isnt unique.A group of normal working girls and a famous designer and a spoilt,handsome,ignorant son of a mall owner.We see this basic story basis on many types of korean and tdramas.
What makes this so good is 2 things.
1-The cast. I love the cast.It was very well picked and the acting is amazing.The main character is so perfect.The girl, Ren is ordinary,but you kind of get why Chin Shi Qin likes her! She is pretty,though not so outshining,but the sort that really rubs on you :)
Roys character ,Shi Qin is just what i was looking for in ages.He is very very very handsome! I mean I know I shouldnt be so en entranced by his beauty but damn he is even handsomer than most korean actors! :) But on top of looking so good, HIS ACTING IS ALSO REALLY GOOD! his face expressions are good and idk,he is very natural when he acts,which is for me actually all the reason to like him.
2-The humor.Its so good for this drama.I laughed so much in this drama!Its not so extravagant like it is in most of the tdramas,and its just really really good.
Also the interactions of the characters are natural and this is a feel good drama tbh.It makes you laugh and sometimes get teary.
This drama shows you how a normal office girls could make a perfect drama :)
Highly recommended ;)!
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The story may have had the rich boy meet poor girl, but what I love about it is, the poor girl was independent who has a dream and working hard in making it a reality without shame or whining about it or expecting anything from anyone. It's in line with her personality in keeping a low profile, from the way she dresses up to her interactions and the way she expresses her dream. She meets Zi Qi who's the total opposite in extravagance and spoil. The drama (I. e. his father) puts him in the same level as her in terms of wealth, and this sets their relationship off to a great start. At this point the drama becomes really the story of a bunch of employees working at the same firm. There is the annoying second lead girl, the bore to death second lead guy but somehow they just don't matter. Second lead guy was just written in such a boring way they they just resolved his issues fast and wrote him off. Second lead girl stayed to be the hated one but it doesn't frustrate me the way kdramas do, mainly because our lead's maturity with always facing reality and talking about what bothers them. Other characters I liked was the manager who at first came off as annoying but really grew on me. I specially loved his relationship with Zi Qi. They stay constantly hilarious throughout the whole drama. Another is Le Le who, at times may be annoying, but I love how upfront she was about everything. She didn't care who you were, she'll talk right back at you if you look down at her. The parents were kinda too perfect but the relationships felt genuine.
The story isn't perfect that'st for sure. There were some mistakes that we see Xing Ren do that I found unacceptable with her experience and how she was place in the beginning of the drama as hard working. Zi Qi becoming was too perfect in the last few episodes. His mother magically changing suddenly, and I felt there was a backstory about her that they kinda dropped and decided not to follow.
Acting wise, to no one's surprise Roy Qiu is the star here. From comedy to growth to subtle romance, he's got full control on all. Patrick Li was also amazing in comedy I would laugh in every scene he's at. It's my first time seeing Alice Ke but she did her role justice to say the least. The actrice that plays the role of Mandi was also funny. This drama is maybe Tia Li's best role. She's not great here, but I think being evil suits her more than being good :P
I loved some of the songs used in there specially the song Wanna Fly in Free Fall the guitar playing in that song is addicting :D
Overall a very enjoyable drama.
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Story- The first thing I have to say is it was just too long! If it was like 15-16 eps long it would have been a lot more enjoyable. Even individual episodes feel sooo long. The only thing I liked about it was the romance. I liked that it was straightforward and even though there were outsiders trying to complicate things for the couple their feelings never wavered. With that being said, the actual plot/or lack there was where I had an issue. After episode 10 I kept on having the urge to skip scenes and even episodes but I held on till episode 19. After that, I skipped to the last episode. At least the ending was nice. Really though an office setting is not the way to go unless you manage to make it where actual events are taking place and the audience isn’t just watching people work in an office and having conversations for almost 25 eps.
Acting/Cast- The casting was very good as the leads had good chemistry and the ensemble cast meshed pretty well. When it comes to the acting by the leads, I felt like Roy kind of had to hold Alice Ke’s hand. Alice Ke’s acting was passable but her lack of emotions during important scenes was disappointing. Their were angsty scenes especially towards the end but I just didn’t care because I felt like Shen Xing Ren didn’t care. As for the supporting actors, it was a mix bag meaning some actors overacted, and some good.
Music- I really liked most of the OST. Some songs were upbeat and made the drama fun and some were angsty but memorable.
Rewatch- I just don’t think I have it in me to watch this again.
Overall this only needs to be watched if you’re a Roy Chiu fan and you have a lot of patience.
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This review may contain spoilers
i really enjoyed Office girls. i had never seen any of the acotrs in anything and loved all of them, esp. Patrick Li who stole the show in every sceene he was in. now i know some people won't like this, but there did come a point in the show(abt ep.11 or 12) where Roy Chui seemed to put on an expression of ...i dont know confident contrition maybe?? any way he put on this expression and that was how he looked at Alice ke for the rest of the show. i loved Alice's Ke's character but Roy Chui was absolute perfection.
at first i was really excited at the length of the show b/c i just loved it so much but really the last 5 episodes are just there, not bad, just...there. the last ep. was the worst. other than a really great chunk in the middle i didnt care for the final episode.
it's hard to talk aobut all the really awesome things in this show w/out posting spoilers, just suffice it to say that it is now on my top 5 list. even if you dont like tdrama, watch this it's hilarious and awesome.
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The first half of the drama or so was wonderfully built up. Though the premise of this drama seemed cliche and simple, the execution was smooth and not boring-mostly because of the leads. This drama seemed to be a Cinderella story-poor girl falls in love with the rich prince and vice versa but this drama was a journey of growth for both the leads, and how they became stronger together than apart. They became better because of each other. Although there were many obstacles in their journey, they were able to overcome it and come out stronger than ever. Their romance didn't feel deliberate at all. From strangers, to co-workers, to friends, and finally to lovers- the progression seemed realistic and it was just warming to watch.
I have to say I got a little bit annoyed the second half with the antagonist, Kai Er (Tia Li). Tia actually acted really well here-more emotions than in Fall in Love With Me anyways. I agree with many viewers that this drama stumbled a bit in the second half but I still enjoyed it immensely. (I did fast forward some Kai Er scenes though...) Patrick Li was amazing here-over the top hilarious. This drama demonstrated Taiwanese humor at its best although it was a little much sometimes. Shi Te Long (Patrick Li) added a lot of needed laughs to this drama though; he was like a comic character come to life! His bromance with Zi Qi was amusing; the sarcasm they throw to each other is entertaining to watch.
Some people weren't satisfied with the plot because Office Girls didn't feel like it was really about Office Girls in the second half. It became more about the relationship issues. I think if you can look past that and go into this drama knowing the focus is more on the relationship and the office is just a surrounding issue/environment, you'll find it easier to watch. The office dynamics were really funny and eventually you see that the co-workers really care about one another, proving that there really can be real friends in a work environment. Of course, there's always someone that will backstab you for every good person there is. I think this drama showed the nuances of the competitiveness of office life pretty well. Now, differences in social class does eventually come into play which is why I said this drama dragged in the second half. The overwhelmingly entertaining first half definitely overrode the slight disappointment I had with the second half, and the ending kind of made up for it as well.
Music was lovely-I downloaded the OST. The music complemented all the scenes very well, especially the emotionally heart-wrenching ones.
I think I'll re-watch some of the scenes, and maybe all of it again later because at 25 episodes it's pretty long for a SETTV drama. Now I'm off to watching Marry me or Not-hopefully Alice and Roy will have explosive chemistry there as well! Again, I recommend this drama a lot; it's full of laughter, romance, and heart. Don't miss it. (10/9)
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Cute fluffy show
The premise of the show is quite typical of a lot of dramas that it revolves around a poor girl and rich heir (also cue an overbearing mother-in-law). It is definitely a light hearted show and prefect if you want something fluffy. It is also great for practicing Mandarin.When I first started the show, I immediately became deeply invested and could easily watch 5 episodes a day. The first half of the show was great however I found that around the half way mark it started to drag on and was quite repetitive. I did consider giving up but held on to the end which was a very satisfying finale.
The main character is Shen Xing Ren who I really liked initially however I felt her character got weaker as the show got on and I found her quite annoying by the end. The male lead is better and you see a lot of character development with Qin Zi Qi. My favourite characters have to be Shen Xing Ren's best friend Lele and the absolute best is Shi Te Long who is hilarious (especially his interactions with other staff). The villain of the show is quite interesting too especially her backstory and not just a black and white villain like many other shows.
Overall, it was an enjoyable show although I wouldn't watch it again. I would recommend if you want something light or you're currently studying Mandarin.
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As far as stories go, it's likely one of the most cliche ones in dramaland- rich, spoilt boy is forced to work as an assistant of an assistant in his dad's company to learn the ropes of management. No surprise there.
What really hits you is Chiu Roy's acting, which can only be described as absolutely delightful. Through him, you're able to see a SUBSTANTIAL difference in his character from the first episode to the last. The dynamic between Chiu Roy's character and the manager character show is another brilliant additional, which isn't surprising considering how hilarious the manager's antics are!
Alice Ke as the female lead is decent, though not particularly memorable. Nonetheless, her close friendship with Yao Yao's Yu Le is very sweet and makes you wish you had such an understanding, caring and loyal best friend (that is, if you don't already have one.)
What disappointed me the most was Li Tia's Zheng Kai Er. I recently watched her in Jojo's World, and I found her more than decent there. Over here, on the other hand, her acting was incredibly dull; her lack of reactions, coupled with no facial expressions, made what could have been a good, evil female lead a sort of pity party of one. Whelp, on a positive note, it makes you appreciate just how far Li Tia has grown as an actress.
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Almost all the characters were interesting which made this one, one of my favorites.
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But they get through that and his mothers interfering only to be shaken apart by the truth he was concealing. The final two episodes are brilliant but I would like to have seen them working together in the company they love and all their friends and their relationships especially Lele and Shi Te Long, what a pair!
I'm now watching it again it's that good.
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✒ ⚛❇✴ A Little Extra Ordinary ⚛❇✴°7° °VG° ?%?
It's the rich-heir-has-to-start-from-the-bottom-with-nothing trope! I'm still good for 1/year. Maybe 2. Not tired of it yet. Qin ZiQi has been given an apartment and 💴, so he starts with more than nothing. It's an advance, though. He'll have to pay it back. He either makes it in the company on his own merits, or he doesn't inherit. If anyone finds out who he is, he doesn't inherit. This is his reward for getting his ivy league MBA (?) …maybe it's payback for him taking 5 years to get a 2 year degree… Anway, the fat years are over. The lean years begin.OG is a 2011 release that is rated 7.6 on MDL. It is 1 season consisting of either 40 40-minute episodes or 25 90 minute ones, depending on your source. I know the math doesn't add up on that. Netflix is running 40 episodes and the first one is 40 minutes. That's all I can say as I type this. The /show/ adds up, though. It's a good old good-girl-reforms-bad-boy story, in the end. He was bad in that he was pompous and useless - that's a baaaad combination.
OG is simplistic - practically kid-level. Why do I like this and I trashed other Twdramas that aren't all that different from this one? It succeeds because it stays on course - cute, simple, cheerful, and error-free. There's simple fare that is put together well and then there's Love Now-3.6, which wasn't. A couple side characters are alittle much, but the two leads keep it on course - even though the romance could have been better. OG radiates warmth while other shows have the effect of a scratchy wool sweater causing constant little irritations. That is missing here, though two characters come close. What can I say? OG is my kinda stupid.
They keep it to modest mini dramas and some fail-safes (like his mother disapproving of his taste in girlfriends) while avoiding mistakes. It's pleasant hanging with these people. They're sincere (except for all that lying about his identity on ZiQi's part😜). Their relationship is cute. When it becomes painful (Ren really goes through it; the actress does a nice job) I felt for her, but it didn't crush me. It's just a smooth ride - A smooth escalator.
In the last 10 episodes the plot became more interesting, while many shows flounder at that stage. I wanted his mom to pay for her crimes against humanity, I wanted Kai Er to be hauled off to jail, or at least get fired, and I couldn't wait until Ren found out the truth about him so they can get beyond the storm that's destined to kick up from that. I also,really wanted her to treat ZiQi alittle better. She's going through too much, tbf. But what I wanted, most of all, was for Ren to do her hair, makeup, and dress prettily. They better make her look like a superstar or I'll be furious, I was thinking. (They let me down. She might just look her worst in the wedding gown).
The opening song is ratched, but the soundtrack is pretty solid. There's too many flashbacks in the last 2 eps, and they're only tolerable because the music is good. Some of the fashion is laughable, but heaven help me, I like some of it.
Roy Chiu (The Family, Man in Love) is the ML, Qin ZiQi. The Taiwanese took men's hairdos very seriously in this era. He's coiffed up superbly. He's a very good looking guy. I like his manner even though it's a little stiff and ultra cool. He has this habit of turning his head to the side in a way that reminds me of Ben Stiller in the film, Zoolander-8.8. Zoolander is a model and he names his varied vogues, or facial expressions. This guy's definitely sporting some Blue Steel.
Patrick Lee plays the duo's boss. He was great in The Fierce Wife-8, which starts slowly but ends great: It's excellent. Here, he's overly cartoonish - it's bad. He's in need of some bad boy reform, himself. This actor is still weirdly likable. Ren’s roomie is a tiny little cutie, Liu Yu Le (Kuo Shu Yao from The Wolf). She and Boss get stuck in the elevator together, one day. That, along with some other fateful run-ins get his heart stuck on Ms Liu. He develops a thing for her and chases her for the rest of the show. At first she's horrified and disgusted, but he's got over 30 episodes to work on her. Her voice makes falsetto anime characters sound like Annie Lennox. She's a wind-up squeaky toy. It's too much, at times. I told myself it was cute into the teen episodes but then I just wanted to smack her. She's too angry, mean, and grating.
ZiQi's dad is played by Shen Meng Sheng. He's one of the best things in Love Now-3.6. Lam Sau Kwan (Magic Moment) is ZiQi's mother, an over the top character. I can't form a thought beyond that. I'd love to see this actress again to assess her skills more. James Wen (The World Between Us, Once upon a Time in Lingjian Mountain-7.5, Douluo Continent-9) portrays Xu Cheng Feng/Old Yu. He will vie for our FL's affections. His ex, Wei Min Na (Janel Tsai) gets involved. Both Of them starred in The Fierce Wife. The director is Hsu Fu Chun who brought us The Rational Life-7 and The Fierce Wife, so I'm officially a fan.
Back to the beginning. Ren & ZiQi meet. She's blocking his view of a hottie whilst wearing the dino balloon-selling plushie. He writes his number on a balloon and asks her to deliver it to said hotness. She says ‘that ain't my job’. They argue. He pops the balloon and stomps off. He finds out he's been relegated to the cubicle-class in the following scene, ahd she's his supervisor. Guess who's the dinosaur now?
ZiQi wants to date the scorching hot Zheng Kai Er (Tia Lee from Jojo's World) but he can't be happy beside her. He keeps craving Shen Xing Ren's company. “Ren” is played by Ko Chia Yen of Someday or One Day & Copycat Killer. She's ordinary. An ordinary office worker, ordinary appearance, ordinary body, ordinary IQ, ordinary performance, ordinary educational background, ordinary income, and an ordinary sense of style. She has extraordinary spunk and resolve. This actress has a freckle on her lower lip. Never seen that before. Yang Li Yin (You Go! Girls!, My Unexpected Roommate) is really sweet as her Mama.
Kai Er turns out to be quite the snake. She's smart, so she picked up on ZiQi's true identity early on. She's been doing everything to advance her cause of becoming party to his fortune, which means she's been actively undermining Ren. This actress is gorgeous. I think that caused me to tolerate her longer than I should have. Her acting is a little strange, but I'm not sure if it's the part she plays. Kai Er makes some unsavory choices.
There's something quite sweet about the main romance. She's practical and often described as homely though I think she has an exotic look to her. (I was waiting for the episode where they dress her up because she's always in basic pants tops and ponytails). He's a bit of a brat. They spend many episodes in which they're virtually, but not officially, together. They're 85% there, and holding, because she won't make it official. She refuses to admit out loud that she likes him. Then she's offered a wonderful job opportunity overseas. Dilemma.
“Every penny I don't spend is a penny I earn,” she tells him in ep2. For their first date, once they are official, they stay “in” because cheapskate-Ren points out that renting a DVD is much more economical than going to a theater. I noticed they're watching Autumn's Concerto-7.2 from 2009, which is over 30 episodes, and they're at the end of the show: Long date! {I still consider myself fairly new to Asian programming, but my ability to pick up on what they're watching on the television may be a sign that I've graduated from noob to intermediate Asian programming watcher.}
Their first kiss is surprisingly good. She actually dropped money on the ground as he moved in. For a true penny pincher, through and through, this says volumes. In the end, their interaction is warm but not steamy. The actual romance takes a step back from the whole story.
No one is born annoying. ZiQi just has lots of growing up to do. The attitude he displays, like he doesn't care about anything or anyone, is just a front to hide his vulnerability. What he really wanted was a girl who feels like home as his parents were never around. Ren is there, and she is making his newfound “poverty” comfortable. Ren has been slogging away on her own for a long time. She cannot suffer fools, and ZiQi is borderline foolish. She's good for him. She makes him want to be a man. By the time the show has passed the halfway mark he makes this observation: “Only a mature and dependable man can truly give a woman happiness and a sense of security.” Well, bless his heart!
QUOTES📢
According to Indian philosopher, Krishnamurti, fear is one of the greatest problems in life. A mind that is caught in fear lives in confusion, in conflict, and therefore must be violent, distorted, and aggressive. It dare not move away from its own patterns of thinking, and this breeds hypocrisy.
〰🖍 IMHO
📣7.3 📝7 🎭7 💓6 🦋4.5 🎨6 🎵/🔊7 🔚7.5 🤗5 ▪ 🌞6 ⚡2.5 😅2.5 😭2 😱1 😯3.5 🤢2 🤔3 💤1
Shazams:
好朋友只是朋友 & 微加幸福 by Yisa Yu - it's lovely, 永不 by Daikyu Wu
Age 9+ Rated Everyone
Re-📺? Tough one. It's possible.
🇹🇼Taiwan
Age of Rebellion-9.5
Autumn's Concerto-7.2
Back to 1989-7.1
Black & White-6.8
The Fierce Wife-8 - worth sticking with
Inborn Pair-4.2
Love, Now-3.6
Love You-7
Office Girls-7
Two Fathers-7.5
C🇨🇳:
A Little Thing Called First Love 8.5;
Find Yourself 8.9;
The Romance of Tiger and Rose 9.8;
The Sleepless Princess 9.1;
Wait, My Youth-8.4
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